大般涅槃經集解 11.19

11.19

案僧亮曰：福勝為大者，不損財之福勝損財之福也，誠為大施。而此問難答。夫滋味者，庸人之所貪，至於對其事者，必生厚薄之念；而能自抑不受，斷貪脩戒，長養法身，以財用淨故，施主不損己財，功德大也。若不抑而受，生貪破戒，增長生死，財用不淨，施主損財，而功德少也。此實難答而能答也。法瑤曰：夫不見可欲心不亂者則易，見則難也。今施以可欲，而心無染者，是則因施欲故，無欲之懷日新、知足之心更遠，豈非難施所欲乃所以施法也。是為一毫之費，而法施之益弘矣。施名流布，義在於茲也。僧宗曰：前明自正正他理無不盡，正以外化事中乖於常慮，人所不達，應須知耳。夫施財為易，施人名聞為難；今就施名聞為釋也。何者？諸人持戒，少欲知足，而此施主本意為顯此人令德，不在捨財，是以於綢人廣眾之中施所不受。彼既不受，以眾人而望之，是則不受者少欲知足之譽顯也，施者能捨大施之名彰也。智秀曰：此下明義，有五翻：第一正解隨問答相、第二因事請佛立斷肉之制、第三引昔誠教為難、第四舉未來之非成今斷肉之制、第五諮請淨法也。

Sengliang states: "Merit being superior constitutes greatness" means that the merit of not diminishing wealth is superior to the merit of diminishing wealth; this is truly a great gift. Yet this question is difficult to answer. Now, delicious flavours are what ordinary people crave; when confronted with such a matter, thoughts of abundance or scarcity will inevitably arise. Yet if one can restrain oneself and not accept it, cutting off craving, cultivating the precepts, and nourishing the dharmakāya, then because the use of the wealth is pure, the donor does not diminish their own wealth, and the merit is great. If one does not restrain oneself and accepts it, generating craving and breaking the precepts, increasing birth and death, then the use of the wealth is not pure, the donor diminishes wealth, and the merit is small. This is truly difficult to answer, yet one is able to answer it. Fayao states: For the mind not to be disordered when not seeing what is desirable is easy, but seeing it makes it difficult. Now, when given what is desirable, if the mind is unstained, then because what is desired was given, the state of mind free from desire becomes daily renewed, and the mind of contentment reaches even further; is giving what is difficult to give—what is desired—not precisely the means by which the Dharma is given? Thus with the expense of a single hair, the benefit of the gift of Dharma is vast. That the donor's reputation is widely proclaimed—its meaning lies herein. Sengzong states: The previous explanation of rectifying oneself and rectifying others exhausted the principle completely; it is precisely because within the matters of transforming others things contradict ordinary thinking and are not understood by people that one must know them. Giving material wealth is easy, but giving a person a renown is difficult; here it is explained in terms of giving renown. Why? All these people uphold the precepts with few desires and contentment, and this donor's original intention was to make manifest this person's excellent virtue, not to part with wealth; therefore, amidst a dense crowd of people, he gives what will not be accepted. Since that person does not accept it, seen from the perspective of the multitude, the fame of few desires and contentment of the one who does not accept is made manifest, and the reputation of being able to bestow a great gift of the donor is proclaimed. Zhixiu states: The explanation of the meaning below has five turns: first, directly explaining the mark of answering in accordance with questions; second, requesting the Buddha to institute the prohibition on cutting off meat on account of events; third, citing genuine teachings of the past to formulate an objection; fourth, bringing forward future faults to establish the present prohibition on cutting off meat; fifth, inquiring about the pure dharma.